NO. 2 ranked bantamweight MMA fighter Stephen “The Sniper” Lomanis leaning toward ONE Bantamweight Muay Thai World Champion Jonathan “The General” Haggertyin the latter’s superbout against MMA bantamweight kingpin Fabricio “Wonder Boy” Andrade.
Loman on Haggerty vs Andrade
The two superstars battle for the vacant ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Title at ONE Fight Night 16: Haggerty vs. Andrade this Saturday, 4 November, inside Lumpinee Boxing Stadium.
Andrade has become one of the most fearful strikers in the world of MMA but, when it comes to purely striking, Loman says it’s hard to bet against the Englishman.
“I think the advantage here belongs to Haggerty because he’s been fighting for so long under striking rules. He’s also had many memorable matches here in ONE Championship. So, I believe he has more of the advantage in this fight,” he said.
“As for Fabricio, although he can apply his striking in his MMA matches, he still uses his ground game a lot. Of course, he’s still training BJJ and wrestling during his normal fight camps, but now, he won’t be using those in this fight.”
While both fighters will have to adjust to the kickboxing ruleset, the Filipino expects an easier transition for “The General,” as he’ll only need to unlearn a few things before entering the ring.
Compare that to Andrade, who’s never competed in a pure striking bout under the ONE banner, and Loman believes it’s a no-brainer.
“I think Haggerty will just adjust for a bit in this fight because the only things that he’ll remove are his elbows and probably some of his knees because this fight is under kickboxing,” he said.
“Meanwhile, Andrade will have to forget his wrestling and BJJ for a while. Haggerty will have to take away his elbows and knees. That’s just a small difference.”
While he’s not counting out the Brazilian, knowing that he’s one of the best pure strikers in MMA today, Loman’s still siding with Haggerty in this fight.
“This is another difficult fight to predict, but I think this goes to Haggerty because striking is his department, and I feel he’ll match up well against Fabricio,” Loman said.
“Fabricio, though, isn’t an ordinary striker, and that’s why this fight will be an exciting one. I think these two will trade throughout and Haggerty, if he gets the chance, will get the KO win.”
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